Look, laugh and listen
In this article we’ll show more of the graphic design mistakes that slipped through the cracks during the production phase. Were these errors made under tight deadlines or too much pressure? These are the times when visual gaffes happen.

Some slip-ups are understandable while others could have been entirely preventable. Whatever the case, we hope that the mistakes of others can help all of us to be more careful when producing our images.

Have a good laugh and file these “lessons” away until you need them…especially when you only have a few hours left till deadline. Our thanks go to the members of photodisasteters.com for finding all of these gems or should we say lumps of coal?

Sweat the little stuff
Sometimes it’s the little stuff that gets past the gatekeepers during production. The errors aren’t big ones but they do point out that someone didn’t take the time to be more precise in the editing of the images.

In this case, an ad for the Audi A5 dashboard looks elegant and sporty except for one little detail.
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If you look closely between the 5 and 6 on the tachometer (left dial) you’ll see that the image has the rpm markers missing.

Yes, it’s just a little detail but car fans will immediately notice the omission.

This would be OK for the general public but to a car fan it’s a definite no-no.
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Was it really worth it?
Large businesses and companies spend a great deal of ad money to get the word out on their products; the ads cost a princely sum to produce.

Scarlett Johansson has represented Moët beverages for several years and this photo is one of the many she posed for in the Moët magazine ads.

But if you consider that Moët probably spent hundreds of thousands, if not millions, to have this ad produced, you may have said to yourself, “I could have done that…and probably a lot cheaper too.”
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This ad is about as “cut and paste” as you can get and we don’t mean that in a good way.

The balloons were shot separately in a studio (note the double highlights on many of them), while Ms. Johansson was photographed on a couch during another photo session.

The background (out of focus) was used as the backdrop for this image. Drop out the green screen behind the balloons and Ms. Johansson, do a few layers and voila, you have a composite image.

There’s nothing wrong, inherently with the concept, but considering the cost of this ad we think that Moët received the short end of the stick when the contract was signed with this ad agency.

Sweat the little stuff, again…
Sometimes it’s cost effective to use an old graphic for an event that happens annually. All you have to do is to change the year or date and you’re done.

Not so fast, bud. You have to be careful that you’ve changed all the important graphics in the image to make sure none of the old dates are still present. Can you spot the error in this image?
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The year “09” appears correct but if you look at its reflection you can see that it says “08” from the previous year’s ad.

You can see the enlarged ad here and the actual mistake here.

Graphic design school
Talent can help you attain a career in graphic design; graphic design schools help you to master the techniques of using various elements to produce professional graphics.

If you are a graphic designer, continued education classes are available at your graphic design college. These courses can bring you up to speed on the latest software and hardware applications.

If you are planning to attend a graphic design school, speak to your school counselor about the various career training options available to you in this fast-moving industry.

Next time…
Not everything that is a “mistake” is a mistake. In some cases graphic designers and art directors break the rules to make a point or draw attention to the subject at hand.

Stay tuned for examples in next week’s article on Graphic design mistakes and blunders.